Ben Mims' Perfect Cornbread

Our Test Kitchen granted the "perfect" moniker to Ben's recipe, thanks to the extra flavor and superior texture his browned butter affords. This recipe and Cornbread Pudding with Whiskey Caramel are two of the many treasures in Ben's fresh new cookbook, Sweet & Southern: Classic Desserts with a Twist.

Hands-on 20 min., Total 55 min.

Ingredients

1 cup plain yellow cornmeal

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

2 cups buttermilk

2 large eggs

1/2 cup butter

How to Make It

Step 1

Preheat oven to 425°. Whisk together first 5 ingredients in a large bowl. Whisk together buttermilk and eggs; stir into cornmeal mixture just until combined. Heat a 10-inch cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat until it just begins to smoke. Add butter, and stir until butter is melted. Stir melted butter into cornbread batter. Pour batter into hot skillet.

Step 2

Bake at 425° for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden and cornbread pulls away from sides of skillet. Invert cornbread onto a wire rack; serve warm.

Ratings & Reviews

seaside725

No, you are correct. One thing my family knows well is cooking a successful pan of corn bread. For perfection, it is one egg too much and if you want a bit more of the "corn" taste, either add 1/4 more of corn meal or 1/4 less of flour.Lastly, a little known secret is adding one heaping tablespoon of mayonnaise to the batter. This aids in making it less dense. My Mom and Grandmother always added a tablespoon of sugar, I prefer adding honey to the mixture. Following these simply changes should make a difference.

webeasy's Review

Follow instructions. Melt butter once the skillet is hot don't start them together. My guys thought it a little cakey, so the next time I reduce flour by 1/4 cup and increased corn meal by 1/4 cup. Good both ways.

mrslittlewood's Review

Thank you, Ben! Best cornbread I've ever made. I have a 9" cast iron skillet so had to cook it a bit longer. But it was still moist and delicious. I will never use another receipe except this one. My step-mom makes the best we have ever eaten but I can't master. So this is MY best.

Windhill's Review

I always trust Southern Living recipes and back in the day collected every annual recipe book and almost cooked by them exclusively. Because I have had such success with them, I almost wonder if this cornbread recipe has errors in it. I think the problem was way too much butter and one too many eggs. It cooked doughy and had a terrible texture. I allow for the possibility that I measured something wrong, but I won't try this again.